Service will link company's content, digital devices.
Exclusive: Comcast in Talks to Buy NBC-Universal
Deal negotiated at New York meeting on Tuesday. Comcast denies deal is done, but doesn't deny talks.
Related
Slideshow
The Hotel Bel-Air has undergone a lot of changes over the years, but it's in for its biggest face-lift via a two-year renovation. Here is a collection of then and now photos.
Updated on Thursday at 11 a.m.:
Jeff Zucker, CEO of NBC Universal, told employees in an email Thursday morning that "a number of possible things could happen" if part owner Vivendi sells its 20 percent stake in the company.
He did not comment on TheWrap's exclusive report Wednesday that NBC Universal is in talks with Comcast for a potential sale. He wrote:
"Given the attractive nature of our assets, there is always significant interest in NBC Universal," he wrote in the email. "That has been amplified lately by the annual discussion with Vivendi about its 20 percent ownership of our company. Vivendi has been a superb owner of NBC Universal, along with GE, for more than five years. They have not yet made us aware of any final decisions about their future with us; should they choose to exit, there are a number of possible things that could happen."
Meanwhile, CNBC reported Thursday that the negotiations between Comcast and the entertainment company involved spinning off the unit into a new company, with Comcast taking 51 percent economic control of the company.
More to come on this story as developments arise....
Updated on Wednesday at 5:20 p.m.:
Comcast, the nation’s leading provider of cable, entertainment and communications products and services, is in talks to buy the entertainment giant NBC Universal from General Electric, according to knowledgeable individuals.
Deal points were hammered out at a meeting among bankers for both sides in New York on Tuesday, executives familiar with the meeting said
Two individuals informed about the meeting said that a deal had already been completed at a purchase price of $35 billion. But other executives said a deal was not complete, and Comcast denied there was a deal in place:
“While we do not normally comment on M&A rumors, the report that Comcast has a deal to purchase NBC Universal is inaccurate.”
A spokeswoman for NBC Universal had no comment. 
NBC Universal has been believed to be in play for months, although GE has publicly denied any intention of selling the unit. In recent weeks, minority stakeholder Vivendi has been apparently preparing to exercise its right to sell 20 percent of the entertainment company in an IPO.
Comcast has been among those rumored to be interested in buying that equity.
But the Tuesday meeting was about a much larger gambit, according to the knowledgeable individuals. The NBC Universal division of GE, a premium content company, is a likely fit for the cable giant with its massive distribution pipeline. That is especially the case when the division's potential price tag has dropped significantly from a year ago.
Comcast’s market cap is $48.44 billion. NBC Universal has fallen in value to an estimated $35 billion, from about $55 billion a year ago.
Other suitors have been rumored to be interested in NBC Universal, including Time Warner. Time Warner has denied any interest in a purchase.
The talks come after a rough summer for Universal Pictures, which had one of the worst box office runs in the studio’s recent past.
Comments
jack Says
I work for nbc universal and ge is intrested in selling since money has been bad they have made soem bad deals but dont know much of whats going on.
MR. G Says
I think the original story may have been right on. NBCU and Comcast tried to discredit the story through CNBC which they own. Why? Because details were still being worked out. As we know as soon as Comcast investors heard about it they dumped Comcast stock. The guys at the companies probably knew that would happen. They wanted more time in secret. Now Comcast can't probably afford the $35 Billion.
I had heard from some guys on the street about the deal, so I don't know if they got the story here. But from what I've heard no other company was even close to offering to buy NBCU except Comcast. So there are some major PR folk trying to discredit the original story.
Why? Says
So does this mean that in a half hour show on NBC it's going to 10 minutes worth of content and 20 minutes of commercials? Not that it isn't already getting to be like that now... Oh, and stop advertising other shows on the bottom while the current show is running. I don't know why people thought it was a good idea. It's damn distracting.
Anita Busch Says
Chalk up another error for Sharon Waxman. So many over the years that you should be downright embarrassed, Sharon.
I have never seen a journalist with an error rate as high as yours.
Angry person who yells at town hall's Says
Dumb pipes? Everyone knows the internets are full of tubes!!!!
Jill Kennedy Says
Is this the way it's going to be? Sharon, if the story is "inaccurate" perhaps you should post an update about what you know to be "accurate."
It's a crazy world when Nikki Finke is the one being reserved on this story.
http://mankabros.com/onmedea/2009/10/comcast-acquires-nbc-universal.html
Mark Watson Says
Vivendi is the Latin word meaning "living."
Phil Blonjett Says
Sharon Waxman and this site are just plain unreliable. This is just the latest example of inaccurate reporting by The Wrap. Earlier this week, this site posted a video of Matt Damon on Entourage and asked whether it was real. Anyone with a brain knew that it wasn't - it was a preview that had aired on the show the night before it was posted on the site. In fact, Nikki Finke was name-checked on the same show.
That is the current state of the Hollywood trade blogs - Sharon thinks an obviously staged scene that aired on the show could be real and Nikki is mentioned on the show itself.
Drill down into most of Sharon's stories and you'll see what I mean - just plain wrong on many facts.
Let The Wrap deathwatch begin.
Dean Nelson Says
Comcast may be a fiscally conservative company, but they are far from Republican. In fact the FCC under Bush was very anti-cable, and Comcast and other cable companies worked hard with Democrats to try and balance the retransmission debate. They are also very active with a lot of social programs that align more with Democrats than Republicans. Their head of HR, Charisse Lille is one of the top people in the HR industry and she is African American. They voted with their wallets at considerable expense to build their headquarters in Philadelphia - as a vote of confidence in that fairly left-leaning city. I have no love lost for Comcast, but be fair.
ScotsmansKilt Says
CORRECTION: NBC bought Bravo from Cablevision in November of 2002, years before the deal with Vivendi. If you make basic mistakes in the company's chronology, why should we trust the rest of the facts in your article?
anthony Says
Controlling content seems to be a logical step for a company
like comcast which has been raping it's cable customers for
years with grossly inflated pricing and miserable content.
When you take the total number of films in production and
in the can and then compare that volume to the amount of
films actually broadcast on cable, it isn't just pathetic,
it's almost criminal. The same sad endless parade of films
that are seriously dated and that no one wants to watch.
Cable content is beyond a joke. But the joke is on the
customer and always has been. I mean, people are actually
shelling out money for that crap. If the margin is so tight
for Comcast then how come all of a sudden they have the
financial clout to absorb NBC and Universal. How, because
so years they have lied!!!!!!!
Khan Manka Says
This story makes more sense - a 50% stake and nowhere near $35 billion...
http://www.cnbc.com/id/33112810/site/14081545/for/cnbc/
Khan Manka Says
Unbelievable. What a colossal mistake by Comcast! I suppose that's what crazy companies do. $35 billion? For 80%?
If true, this would leave on DreamWorks Animation as the last big acquisition out there (I'm not counting Lionsgate or Summit as major acquisitions).
Manka Bros. has already passed on DWA.
http://mankabros.com/chairmans-blog/2009/09/jeffrey-katzenberg-called-me...
Lutz Says
Well Liz, the Ahp Chinagi Party Meats company of Pyong Yang will own 20 percent of Sheinhardt, with the remaining 80 percent owned, of course by a Ben Silverman spinoff.
Jacob Louey Says
Other reports are debunking this, does the Wrap ever correct or update their reports? If this isn't true, this is irresponsible, if not illegal.
Patrick Kiernan Says
I am a conservative TEA Party person who would just like to see the news without having to see lies and news with a political slant. We don't need the government to regulate the content towards their views.The American people should not put up with these low standerds and should demand that these shows be called views, not news.
Joseph Says
Comcast (Republican) will be the death of Hardball with Cris Matthews, Keith Olbermann, Rachel Maddows and others.
Republicans will then totally own the airwaves.
Thank God for Amy Goodman, she'll be our only voice in the wilderness.
Liz Lemon Says
Where does the Sheinhardt Wig Company fit into all of this?
lamonth Says
it should be illegal for an owner of owning the airwaves also owning the content. why do our legislators allow crap like this to happen
Brady Brim-DeForest Says
Wow. This could be game changing. Very interesting implications for the world of web television and online content.
Brady Brim-DeForest Says
Wow. This could be game changing. Very interesting implications for the world of web television and online content.
xargaw Says
It is so past time to break these companies up into smaller enities instead of allowing conglomerate consolidation through aquisition. We need competition and more voices in the marketplace instead of a few big bullys calling the shots.
Michael Heister Says
Comcast is smart. Without content-generating divisions, all they got is a bunch of dumb pipes.
NEW COMMENT